Top Nava

Meet the Oregon Workshop Host

Teresa, the host for the Sam’s Valley, Oregon workshop, gets to do something most of us wouldn’t have the courage and stamina to do year after year…teach at a youth correctional facility. Helping the local troubled youth is something she loves and is passionate about. Kids come in as young as 12 years old and up to their 20s with a wide range of struggles (alcoholism, drug addiction, anger management issues, etc…). When they first arrive, they are angry and uninspired; however, she shares that it is typically that after just a month or so in the facility, she sees pretty amazing transformations in these kids. Their faces start to soften and they start to act more like teenage kids. Watching this change is something that warms her heart. Based on experience, she has no question that these kids have the capacity to change and to live very happy and prosperous lives. It’s great that there are people like Teresa doing the day-to-day work to help our youth make their way through the tangled mazes that sometimes come along with growing up.

Teresa is really looking forward to her straw bale house build. The house will be a 1,200sqft home with views of the Siskiyou mountain range. She draws a large part of her inspiration to build her house from memories of her mother. A vibrant and savvy woman who made it a point in life to not take “no” for an answer, but rather to ask “why not?”, Teresa’s mother led her own home build at the age of 70. Tired of living in their small house with her daughter and husband, she single-handedly secured financing and oversaw their new construction project in Roseburg, OR. Teresa’s mother lived in the field of possibility and never believed anything was impossible. This outlook in life left a lasting mark on Teresa and today she is living out her own dream to build a beautiful and energy efficient home.

Teresa feels that her journey, the process of building her house, is being guided by an inner knowing. As obstacles arise, clarity shows up and Teresa knows what the next step is. This guidance has helped her fully accept and embrace the challenge of financing and building a home. She is a woman with a gentle heart and we really commend her for stepping outside of the box and embarking on this endeavor to achieve her dream. This workshop is a great opportunity to help make Teresa’s dream of building a home come true. We are glad that we get to be a part of it!

About Andrew Morrison

Andrew has a passion for straw bale construction that is matched only by his desire to teach his knowledge to others. He has a wealth of experience in designing and building conventional, tiny, and straw bale homes. After years of building, he has moved his practice entirely to consulting and teaching. He shares his knowledge with thousands of people via his DVD series, this website and the roughly six hands-on workshops he teaches each year.